The talented Mr. Santos: A congressman-elect's unraveling web of deception - The Washington Post

But not always.

Before George Santos, 34, made a sanction for himself successful politics, helium had insisted connected being called Anthony — 1 of his mediate names — and often utilized his mother’s maiden name, Devolder, yet incorporating a institution successful Florida with that name.

“He hated that we called him George,” a erstwhile person and onetime co-worker said, speaking connected the information of anonymity to debar being associated with him publicly. “His full household called him Anthony. He wanted to beryllium called Anthony. He would usage the sanction Anthony Devolder.”

With echoes of the fabulist protagonist astatine the bosom of “The Talented Mr. Ripley” publication and movie, Santos has spun an elaborate web of lies and deceptions astir his individuality and his past, according to acquaintances, nationalist records, media reports and, successful immoderate cases, by his ain admission. He besides claims to person abruptly travel into millions of dollars successful wealthiness implicit the past 18 months, adjacent arsenic the fiscal information institution Dun & Bradstreet estimated successful July that his backstage household firm, the Devolder Organization, lone had $43,688 successful revenue.

He said he is portion Black. He said helium is the grandson of Holocaust survivors. He claimed helium helped make “carbon seizure technology.” He claimed to person worked astatine companies that ne'er employed him. He claimed to beryllium a postgraduate of 2 universities, lone to admit that helium has nary assemblage grade astatine all. He adjacent said his parents’ fiscal hardship forced him to permission the prestigious Horace Mann School successful the Bronx “months” earlier helium could graduate. But that assertion and galore others person either been shown to beryllium mendacious oregon lacking grounds by The Washington Post and different quality organizations.

Even by the debased standards for truth-telling successful politics, the scope of Santos’s falsehoods has been breathtaking. It has amazed Democrats who researched him and missed truthful galore details, arsenic good arsenic Republicans who vouched for him.

In an unsuccessful House contention successful 2020 and his palmy contention for New York’s 3rd Congressional District successful November, Santos pitched himself arsenic a cheery antheral of Brazilian descent astatine location successful the Republican Party of Donald Trump. He spoke astatine a rally successful D.C. connected Jan. 5, 2021, telling the assembled assemblage 1 time earlier the deadly onslaught connected the U.S. Capitol: “Who present is acceptable to overturn the predetermination for Donald Trump?”

In interviews arsenic a legislature candidate, helium described himself arsenic “the American Dream.”

He told Lara Trump successful an interrogation this year, “I’m a concern guy. I’ve done backstage equity for 11 years successful New York,” adding that helium “had the privilege of doing business” with the Trump Organization. He told different interviewer, “I’ve gone up the chains of Wall Street. I’ve developed galore companies. I’ve opened my ain business.” His run website said helium had antecedently worked astatine Goldman Sachs and Citigroup, and had degrees from Baruch College and New York University.

On Dec. 19, the New York Times reported that Goldman Sachs, Citigroup, Baruch College and New York University had nary records of him. On Monday, Santos spoke astir the revelations for the archetypal time, telling WABC helium was blameworthy of “résumé embellishment” but insisting the larger communicative astir his beingness is true: “I’m not a transgression who defrauded the full state and made up the fictional quality and ran for Congress.”

Later, Santos’s claims of having Jewish ancestors who fled persecution during World War II were challenged by a study successful Jewish Insider. An undisclosed marriage, and divorce, to a pistillate was revealed by the Daily Beast. He besides wrote connected Twitter that “9/11 claimed my mothers life”; she really passed distant successful 2016.

“I’ve ne'er seen thing similar this,” said Gerard Kassar, seat of the Conservative Party of New York State. “His full beingness seems to beryllium made up. Everything astir him is fraudulent.”

Santos and his representatives did not respond to galore telephone, email and substance messages seeking remark for this article. On Wednesday, Santos wrote connected Twitter that helium is looking guardant to moving successful Congress.

But adjacent earlier his scheduled swearing-in connected Jan. 3, Santos has already spawned caller projected authorities successful Congress. Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-N.Y.) said helium volition present authorities requiring that erstwhile candidates for national bureau supply details of their education, employment and subject history, they bash truthful nether oath. Torres calls the measure the Stop Another Non-Truthful Office Seeker (SANTOS) Act.

The offices of New York Attorney General Letitia James (D), Nassau County District Attorney Anne T. Donnelly (R) and Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz (D) each said they are examining whether Santos broke immoderate laws successful their jurisdiction. ABC News reported that the U.S. attorney’s bureau successful the Eastern District of New York, which covers Long Island, was besides examining Santos’s activities; spokespeople for the bureau declined to remark erstwhile contacted by The Post.

A spokesperson for the House Ethics Committee declined to remark erstwhile asked whether the committee volition motorboat an probe into Santos if helium is sworn successful adjacent week.

The Office of Congressional Ethics, an autarkic assemblage that reviews ethical complaints from the committee, could besides scrutinize Santos if the bureau is reauthorized by the Republican-controlled House. Kedric Payne, a erstwhile lawman main counsel astatine the office, said helium would expect an investigation.

“They are not going to fto thing similar this conscionable happen,” helium said.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) told reporters connected Wednesday that Santos is present “tattooed” connected Republicans successful Congress. House Republican leaders, arsenic good arsenic Reps. Lee Zeldin (R-N.Y.) and Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.), who endorsed Santos, did not respond to messages seeking remark astir him. Rep. Pete Sessions (R-TX.), seat of the National Republican Congressional Committee, told the Washington Examiner that helium is not supportive of Santos joining their conference.

Rep.-elect Nick LaLota (R-N.Y.) said successful a connection that Santos should beryllium investigated by the House Ethics Committee and “if necessary, instrumentality enforcement, is required.” Rep.-elect Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.) said successful a connection that Santos should “cooperate fully” with the investigations. And Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman (R) told CNN that Santos needs to code the “emotional issues” that led to his lying.

“A mean idiosyncratic wouldn’t bash that,” Blakeman said.

The North Shore Leader, a tiny insubstantial connected Long Island, had raised questions astir Santos successful September, but those threads were largely ignored by different outlets. Robert Zimmerman, the Democrat whom Santos defeated successful November, and whose run spent thousands of dollars connected research, told The Post that “frankly a batch of folks successful the media are saying they didn’t person the personnel, clip oregon wealth to delve further” into the story.

Kassar, the Conservative Party of New York State’s leader, said helium spoke with Santos soon aft the archetypal Times communicative was published. “When I spoke to him, helium intelligibly told maine helium had nary intuition of moving again and I told him that was a bully thought and the Conservative Party would person a hard clip endorsing him,” helium said.

When Santos’s parent died connected Dec. 23, 2016, helium collected wealth from radical astatine a religion successful Queens aft saying helium had nary wealth for a funeral, according to a clergyman who spoke with CBS News.

Around this time, Santos asked the erstwhile person and co-worker to acceptable up a GoFundMe page truthful that helium could rise wealth for the funeral, telling the idiosyncratic helium was excessively distraught to taxable the indispensable ID and slope grounds requirements for the crowdfunding service.

The page shows that respective 100 dollars was raised, and the person said it went straight to Santos, who astatine the clip was utilizing the sanction Anthony Devolder connected Facebook and with acquaintances astir New York. The person said they believed the wealth had been utilized for the funeral, which they attended successful precocious December that year. Then connected Jan. 6, 2017, the person said Santos contacted them to inquire if they wanted spell skiing successful the Poconos, wherever helium had conscionable rented a room. The person declined.

In June 2020, Santos wrote connected Twitter that helium is the “grandson of Holocaust refugees.” This month, Jewish Insider cast doubt connected that claim, noting that the dates Santos cited for his grandparents departure from Belgium to Brazil bash not enactment up, nor bash migration records enactment his mentation of his family’s history. The Republican Jewish Coalition, which featured Santos arsenic portion of its yearly November league successful Las Vegas, denounced his mendacious claims astir his practice and said that “he volition not beryllium invited astatine immoderate aboriginal RJC event.”

Even aboriginal parts of Santos’s beingness communicative were fabricated by him.

In an October 2020 interview, Santos recalled an allegedly achy puerility experience. He said of his parents: “They sent maine to a bully prep schoolhouse — which was Horace Mann Prep successful the Bronx. And successful my elder twelvemonth of prep school, unfortunately, my parents fell connected hard times.” Santos went connected to accidental that astatine the time, his household couldn’t “afford a $2,500 tuition” and “I near schoolhouse [with] 4 months till graduation.”

After the schoolhouse was contacted by The Post and provided with respective variations of Santos’s sanction that helium has utilized successful public, Ed Adler, a spokesperson for Horace Mann, wrote successful an email: “George Santos oregon immoderate of the aliases you [cite] ne'er attended HM.”

In that aforesaid March podcast interview, Santos besides said, “I’ve been to Moscow galore times successful my career.” He besides referred to “carbon seizure technology” arsenic thing “that I’ve helped make and fundraised for successful my career. I’ve had a precise extended relation successful state and lipid successful this country.” Santos and his representatives person provided nary impervious of those claims.

The lone clip Santos provided a circumstantial defence astir his falsehoods was during his interrogation connected WABC. When asked wherefore Goldman Sachs and Citigroup had nary grounds of him arsenic an employee, arsenic helium had antecedently claimed, Santos admitted to some lying and being sloppy successful describing his existent enactment successful the industry.

“[A] batch of radical overstate successful their résumés oregon twist a small bit,” helium said. He said helium worked with Goldman Sachs, and Citigroup, conscionable not arsenic an worker at those companies. “I did extended enactment connected the LP broadside with Goldman Sachs successful my clip astatine LinkBridge,” helium said, referring to a one-time employer. “I did extended enactment with Citigroup, successful my clip successful the LP presumption successful LinkBridge Investors, conscionable similar I did enactment with firms connected the GP broadside of things similar Blackstone, and Deloitte, and Robbins, Geller, Dowd and truthful galore different large firms successful the manufacture of backstage equity.”

Goldman Sachs and Citigroup declined to remark connected this latest explanation. Deloitte and Blackstone did not respond to requests for comment.

A spokesperson for Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd, a firm instrumentality firm, told The Post, “We cannot verify this claim. We person nary grounds of Mr. Santos oregon his concern having immoderate concern narration with our firm.”

Sarah Ellison, Camila DeChalus, Marianna Sotomayor and Alice Crites contributed to this report.